1. Technical Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an ink jet printer where ink drops are ejected from an ink pressure chamber made of a piezoelectric material when the ink pressure chamber is deformed.
2. Description of Related Art
A conventional ink jet printer is provided with electrodes within an ink tank and the amount of ink in the ink tank is determined by measuring an impedance between the electrodes. When the amount of ink in the ink tank is below a predetermined value, a message such as "ink end" is indicated to the user prompting replenishment of the ink or replacement of the ink tank, thereby ensuring continued printing operation.
However, the aforementioned conventional printer is disadvantageous in that electrodes used only for detecting the amount of ink are required within the ink tank.